Contractors for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District use various floating barges to drill, demolish and remove rubble from the fixed-crest dam at the Monongahela River Locks and Dam 3 in Elizabeth, Pennsylvania, Aug. 2, 2024. The Pittsburgh District initially breached the dam using controlled explosives on July 10. The district, while working with the contractor, will open a 100-foot-wide navigation channel through the existing dam, restoring a 9-foot draft to allow commercial navigation through the dam without using the lock. The district is committed to completing the 100-foot channel work by Aug. 28. The original projected timeline for opening the channel to navigation was December 2024. Contractors will remove the rest of the dam in 50-foot sections using a series of explosives drilled into the concrete dam. They have been using cranes, excavators, hydraulic hammers and drills on barges to remove rubble from the river. The Pittsburgh District plans to reuse much of the demolished material from the locks and dam to stabilize the dam abutment and the land wall. The district will also use the material to fill in the filling and emptying culvert inside the land wall. (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District photo by Michel Sauret)